The Grammy Awards will introduce five new categories next year, including Best Asian Pop Music Performance and Best Latin Song, as part of an effort to recognise a wider range of musical traditions from around the world.
The announcement follows a landmark year for both Latin music and K-pop at the 2026 Grammy Awards. Puerto Rican artist Bad Bunny became the first performer to win Album of the Year with a Spanish-language album, while “Golden” from the animated film KPop Demon Hunters made history by securing the award for Best Song Written for Visual Media.
According to the Recording Academy, entries for the Best Latin Song category must be predominantly performed in Spanish. The Best Asian Pop Music Performance category will cover a range of genres, including K-pop, J-pop and C-pop.
Recording Academy CEO Harvey Mason Jr said the new categories reflect the organisation’s commitment to recognising the evolving global music landscape.
“These changes were inspired by our music community, which expressed a desire for more opportunities to celebrate emerging and diverse genres,” he said.
The Recording Academy expanded its voting membership last year to include more artists and music professionals from Latin American and Asian communities, a move widely seen as strengthening representation within the awards process.
Three additional categories will also debut next year: Best R&B Collaboration or Duo/Group Performance, Best Traditional Pop Vocal Performance and Best Traditional Folk Album.
The Academy has also revised eligibility criteria for the Best New Artist category. Under the updated rules, artists may now be submitted up to four times, instead of three, potentially giving emerging performers more opportunities to earn a nomination.
The changes will take effect at the next Grammy Awards ceremony.
This year’s winners highlighted the growing global influence of non-English-language music. In addition to winning Album of the Year, Bad Bunny also took home awards for Best Música Urbana Album and Best Global Music Performance.
